Need Serious Approval for My New Build

[Phatzilla]

First of all, sorry if this is in the wrong section but im about to pull the trigger and i really need final approval from the geeks .

CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo E4300 Dual Core Processor


Motherboard
DFI Infinity P965-S - $166.31


Ram
Buffalo Firestix FSX800D2C-K2G 2GB 2X1GB PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL5-5-5 240PIN Dimm Dual Channel Memory - $119.99


Video Card
BFG GeForce 8800GTS OC 550MHZ 320MB 1.6GHZ GDDR3 - $334.34 - 30$ rebate


PSU
Corsair CMPSU-620HX 620W - $149.99 - $20 rebate


HSF
Sunbeam Tuniq Tower 120 - $54.99


Hard Drive
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB SATA2 3GB/S - $83.99

Case
Antec 900 - $117.53


TOTAL = $1,162.34 CANADIAN

There, tried to make it easier on the eyes . Im generally a pretty analytical person and i'm racking my brains trying to find the best bang for the buck (Also interested in stability and power of course). THE COMPUTER WILL BE RUNNING AT LEAST 16+ HOURS A DAY (LIKELY 24/7) AND WILL OFTEN BE UNDER SOME LOAD

So am i lacking in any areas (Or, conversely, putting too much $ into a certain component?). Im really planning on taking the E4300 at least 3+ghz and it being cool and stable.

So ultimately, my question is am i being an idiot in any of these areas? lol. I prefer to spend as little as possible but i mean i wont compromise stability by buying a 50$ cheaper Psu or anything like that. My gaming experience will definetly be limited to 1600x1200 and under (most likely 1280). I'm not planning for uber-godly graphics or 100+ fps, just nice casual gaming when i have free time)



Im dying for suggestions! My hands are itching!

 

[GuitarDaddy]

Looks good, you've obviously done your homework

 

[Phatzilla]

Thanks.

I've gotten word of the DFI mobos being flaky, would the EVGA 650i Ultra board be a better choice?

 

[sthaznpride17]

My DFI board has been rock solid for the past 2 years. I highly reccomend DFI. Just a suggestion, why don't you get the standard eVGA 8800GTS 320MB and OC it? Save ya around 40 bucks.

 

[Arcanedeath]

Might want to consider this memory Ballistix DDR2 1066 @ 134.50 AR $20 MIR not much more cost for some of the best memory money can buy.

Also you may want to consider EVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GEFORCE 8800GTS 640MB DDR3 PCI-Express its 350 after a $30 MIR so $20 gets you twice the memory.

 

[xxeonn]

You can probly also check out the Thermarigh Ultra-120 for about $US50.00.

 

[Trevante]

Go for the Tuniq. Once you add the cost of a fan the Ultra-120, the TR would be more expensive and won't offer a huge performance increase over the Tuniq.

Get the Corsair 520HX. The 620 is overkill for that system.

 

[Ruger22C]

Get E6600 instead.

 

[Roguestar]

Originally posted by: Ruger22C
Get E6600 instead.

The E6600 is much more expensive, and the E4300 can easily be overclocked to E6600 level.

Get a cheaper power supply; 620W is way more than you need. A Corsair 520 will be more than enough.

Consider the Gigabyte DS3 965P motherboard if you fancy overclocking. Also think about an aftermarket cooler, even if you're not.

 

[Phatzilla]

Yeah ill go with the 520W for sure then.

As for the video cards, seriously the OC"D one from BFG is alread the chepeast at 300 CAD after MIR.

Also, i heard of alot people complaining about their DS3's To all hell. I dont want to play the motherboard lottery, so to speak.


What are peoples thoughts on the EVGA 650i Ultra board personally? I have read good reviews on it and just want some more opinions.

 

[Roguestar]

Originally posted by: Phatzilla
Also, i heard of alot people complaining about their DS3's To all hell. I dont want to play the motherboard lottery, so to speak.

Yeah, back in November there were memory issues, but to quote AnandTech:

Originally posted by: AnandTech Motherboard Roundup
AnandTech is pleased to present our Silver Editor's Choice for Best P965 Motherboard to Gigabyte for their innovative GA-965P-DS3. Gigabyte has made a tremendous comeback in the last year when it comes to product design, reliability, and customer support. This particular motherboard completely changed our perception of Gigabyte and was a motherboard that we felt best represented the spirit of the P965 chipset. One feature that Gigabyte introduced on this motherboard that is now in widespread utilization by other suppliers is the 100% use of Conductive Polymer Aluminum Solid Capacitors. We complained bitterly to Gigabyte for weeks about the inability of this board to overclock past the 450FSB level when utilizing Micron D9 memory, and their engineering group responded with several BIOS releases with the latest now allowing the board to reach 500FSB levels. Gigabyte has recently introduced a revision two board that improves upon the original release and adds improved electricals for better Quad Core compatibility, a new heatsink design for improved cooling, and it is now Vista Premium certified. We still wish Gigabyte would have included IEEE 1394 support, more fan headers, and a new color scheme, but otherwise this board is about as solid as they come (now).

 

[imported_SLIM]

I'm assuming your bringing an optical drive from an old system? If not then make sure to grab a sata burner too.

Edit:
For what its worth, I've really enjoyed my DFI board for the past 2 years and have had zero problems with it.

 

[mercanucaribe]

Why hasn't anyone said anything about the video card? For like $30 more, he can get a 640mb card. Also, the E6150 or whatever has 4mb cache

Edit: Doh, Canadian. And his price was before rebate. Still- http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/...jsp?ProductCode=322844

If you're spending that much for the system, might as well get more video memory IMO... it makes a big difference with bigger textures.

 

[Phatzilla]

SLIM, i understand you enjoyed your DFI board but its this particular DFI board (the 965 Chipset) that just came out that's got alot of problems with it.

 

[imported_SLIM]

Originally posted by: Phatzilla
SLIM, i understand you enjoyed your DFI board but its this particular DFI board (the 965 Chipset) that just came out that's got alot of problems with it.

That would be the "For what its worth" part... different chipsets, different cpus, different memory etc. I was simply referring to my experience with one company's product. Um kay?

 

[GPett]

I know you are trying to get the best bang for the buck, here are some suggestions. Prices are listed in US currency NOT canadian.

If you want a 965P motherboard, Anandtech's 965P roundup recommended the Asus, Gigabyte, Foxconn, and Biostar motherboards higher than the MSI. The Asus board is expensive and the Gigabyte has some issues. Why not the Biostar or Foxconn?

BIOSTAR TForceP965 $89.99 after MIR

Foxconn P9657AB-8EKRS2H $94.99 after MIR

Or why not a newer P35 motherboard such as:

MSI P35 NEO-F $98.80

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R $132.50

ASUS P5K $144.00

I agree with the above posters that you should look at the E6320. It has more cache, overclocks the same, and is not that much more expensive.

E6320 $164.50

Also, like someone said above, the 640mb version of the 8800GTS is not all that much more expensive.

Leadtek GeForce 8800GTS 640MB $329.99 after MIR

I agree on the Corsair 520 instead of the 620. They have identical amps on the 12v rail. Which is the rail that gets taxed. So you will not be able to use the 100 extra Watts of the corsair 620.